Would you rather...

[Kaos]

Take a MUR upper and a set of larue rails

or

Get a VLTOR VIS system.

Im down to the last two purchases of my build and this is what I am thinking of doing.

Thoughts? (If this is in the wrong section I'm sorry...I couldn't decide to put it here or in custom build)

[Gutshot John]

Take a MUR upper and a set of larue rails

or

Get a VLTOR VIS system.

Im down to the last two purchases of my build and this is what I am thinking of doing.

Thoughts? (If this is in the wrong section I'm sorry...I couldn't decide to put it here or in custom build)

Love my VIS, but either would be completely satisfactory. With an N4 barrel it's a very nice performer accuracy wise.

I like the look of the VIS a lot more but that's personal preference with little performance differences. The VIS might be marginally lighter, but someone like Grant would know for sure.

[mmike87]

I like the idea of separate parts. That way, if over time your rail becomes worn or dinged, you can replace just the rail.

To be honest though, I don't have any practical experience as to how often rails become worn or damaged - so perhaps it's a non-issue for the vast majority of folks. Maybe an expert can provide an opinion here.

I can certainly appreciate the benefits of the one piece design, however.

[blkexp98]

Like others said i think both would be good options. With that said both have their good points.

With the MUR and a handguard you can choose a different length handguard that may not be avaliable with the VIS. Also if you plan to use a piston system (im not up on them enough to know what fits and what wont) the seperate handguard can allow you to service it if it wont drop out the front of the block. mmike87 does bring up a point on the replacement value of a seperates system but like he said i dont know how much of an issue that is. Mounting a rail mounted front sight may present an issue depending on how good you can align the rail with the upper. I have the MUR and Larue rail combination on my rifle and am still trying to come up with a good way to check and align the rail to the upper. In my situation i probably would have been better off with the VIS. Live and learn.

With the VIS if you plan to use a rail mounted flip up front sight your alignment should be spot on. You also have more options for adding a optic mounts. Mainly what im getting at is if you wanted to mount it forward where the barrel nut would be. Some rails wont allow that unless you strattle the barrel nut with the mount. Then if the rail was off a little you will be putting some torque on both the rail and the optic when you tighten it.

In the end i guess its like everything else. Just depends on your application as to whats better or needed.

[Frens]

sorry Kaos, little hijack...

is the VIS the only monolithic upper available at the moment that take standard AR barrels?

[RD62]

Hmmm....

Tough choice. Probably the MUR and seperate rail. Good luck finding an MUR right now though!

-RD62

[LOKNLOD]

What barrel configuration and length of rail system? What's the intended purpose of the weapon?